Knife edge template

ABSTRACT

A rolling template is combined with a paint spray applicator to place striped indicia on a resilient floor surface. The template is provided with a pair of beveled discs which penetrate the resilient floor surface and form a paint spray contact area for receiving paint from the paint spray applicator.

United States Patent Bowling Sept. 9, 1975 [54] KNIFE EDGE TED/[PLATE 2,324,478 7/1943 Bleakley 239/150 X 2,338,894 1 1944 Be b 404 94 [75] Inventor: George W. Bowling, St. Louis, Mo. e e l FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS [73] Assrgnee: Monsanto Company, St. Louis, Mo.

1,083,009 1/1955 France 404/94 [22] Filed: Sept. 5, 1973 1,155,801 10/1963 Germany 1,147,251 4 1963 G 239 150 211 Appl. No.: 394,583 emany I Primary Examiner-Ronald Feldbaum [52] US. Cl.. 118/301; 118/305; 239/150 Attorney, Agent, or Firm-J. Bowen Ross; Russell E. [51] Int. Cl. B05B 15/04 Weinkauf [58] Field of Search 118/301, 305; 51/11, 8;

239/150; 404/93.9 P [57] ABSTRACT A rolling template is combined with a paint spray ap- [56] References Clted plicator to place striped indicia on a resilient floor sur' UNITED STATES PATENTS face. The template is provided with a pair of beveled 1,561,553 11/1925 Lindsay 239/150 discs which penetrate the resilient floor surface and 1,763,432 6/1930 km 118/305 X form a paint spray contact area for receiving paint 1,974,979 9/1934 Bate 404/93 f the paint Spray applicator 2,015,695 10/1935 Sapp .L .1 404/94 2,244,742 6/1941 Tyson 404/94 X 1 Claim, 4 Drawing Figures PATENTEU 9l975 Q 3,903,842

SHEET 1 [IF 2 PATENTEUSEP 9191s sumaufz FIG.4.

KNIFE EDGE TEMPLATE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention area receiving paint from an airless paint spray nozzle.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective, partially cut-away view of the This invention relates to an apparatus for placing inapparatus showing the nozzle supplying the resilient dicia on a resilient floor surface and, more specifically, to a rolling template supporting an airless paint spray applicator which supplies paint to the resilient floor surface along a path defined by the rolling template.

2. Description of the Prior Art Resilient floor and track surfaces having a sand finish having become very popular in sports such as tennis, basketball and indoor and outdoor track. To date, paint has been supplied to the surface to form boundary lines and the like by means of transfer rollers. The main disadvantages of such an apparatus are that the lines are uneven due to operator error and the paint tends to run in the sand so that there is no clear line of demarcation between the striped and the surrounding non-striped area.

In general, problems of this nature have not been encountered for the reasons either that the surface to be striped is hard and smooth, for example, a wooden basketball court or it is not necessary to provide the paint strip with a clear line of demarcation between itself and its surrounding area, for example, a highway median stripe. The surface of the highway, either asphalt or concrete, is very similar to the sanded surface of the resilient track with the main difference being that the asphalt and the concrete are not resilient by nature. A careful inspection of a highway median reveals that the paint is not entirely restricted to the striped area but does run into the non-striped area which results in no clear line of demarcation. However, for highway purposes, such unevenness is satisfactory.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention utilizes a sand finished resilient surface and a paint spray applicator adaptable to move across the surface and to provide the surface with indicia in the form of a continuous stripe. The paint stripe applicator is comprised of a pair of spaced-apart surface-engaging discs which have their peripheries beveled to adapt the same to penetrate the resilient floor surface a distance to establish a predetermined contact length with the floor surface. The contact lengths of both of the discs cooperate to define a paint spray contact area. The paint spray applicator also includes a frame and a shaft mounted on the frame which receives for rotation the discs. The paint spray nozzle is mounted on the frame and is adapted to deliver a stream of paint onto the floor surface between the discs and within the mentioned paint spray contact area. It is intended that the stream of paint have a length equal to the distance between the rotating discs but to have a width less than the distance of the contact lengths of the discs with the resilient surface. The entire paint spray apparatus may be moved across the resilient surface by any conventional means.

Thus, therefore, an object of this invention is to provide a sand finished resilient floor surface with welldemarcated continuous indicia.

Another object of this invention is to provide a resilient floor surface with indicia by means of a paint spray applicator having rolling templates which actually penetrate the resilient floor surface a distance to establish a paint spray contact area with the paint spray contact surface with paint;

FIG. 2 is an elevation view of the apparatus showing the rolling and beveled template discs actually penetrating the resilient floor surface and showing the paint directed onto the surface also striking the sides of the template discs;

FIG. 3 is a section view taken along lines 3-3 of FIG. 2 and showing the contact length of the template discs with the resilient surface and the width of the stream of paint as it is directed onto the resilient surface; and

FIG. 4 is a section view taken along lines 44 of FIG. 2 and showing the paint spray contact area and the width of the stream of paint as it actually is applied to the resilient floor surface.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT In reference to the Figures, resilient urethane surface 10 is provided with a sand finish by means of sand particles 11 which are slightly embedded on the exposed surface thereof. The sand finish 11 is adapted to provide the resilient floor surface 10 with additional traction for the athletes using the floor surface. The paint spray applicator 12 includes a frame 13 which is comprised of semi-circular bars 14 and 15 and connecting bars 16 which rigidly secure semi-circular bars 14 and 15 into position. Frame 13 is adapted to receive shaft 20. Shaft 20 rotatably receives identical and opposite facings discs 22 and 23 which rotate on shaft 20 at a spaced-apart distance maintained by collar 25. The width of the resulting indicia may be changed by increasing or decreasing the length of collar 25 along with the insertion between the discs 22 and 23 and frame 13 of appropriate washers, not shown. Discs 22 and 23 have their peripheries beveled 26 and 27 respectively, to provide a knife-edge which adapts paint spray applicator 12 through discs 22 and 23 to, in fact, penetrate resilient floor surface 10.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the depth of penetration of the discs into the resilient floor surface results in a contact length A-B. Imaginary lines 31 and 32 which traverse the distance between contact points A of discs 22 and 23 and contact points B of discs 22 and 23 defined along with the distance between contact points A and B of discs 22 and 23 a paint spray contact area 33. Contact spray area 33 is an area provided by discs 22 and 23 which is capable of receiving a spray of paint from spray nozzle 34 such as to prevent excess spray from being deposited onto resilient floor surface 10 outside of that designated area.

Spray nozzle 34 which is adapted to spray paint onto resilient floor surface 10 is mounted on frame 13 and is so positioned as to provide a length of paint onto resilient floor surface 10 which is defined by the distance between discs 22 and 23 and is adapted to provide a width as noted by the distance between C and D of FIGS. 3 and 4. Thus, so long as the width of spray CD is within width as defined by A-B, no spray will be directed onto resilient surface 10 outside of that designated area and thus will provide for lines of clear demarcation between the striped indicia and the portion of resilient floor surface 10 which is not to be marked.

a paint spray contact area, shaft means rotatably receiving said discs, frame means supporting said shaft means, paint spray means mounted on said frame means and being adaptable to deliver a stream of paint onto said floor surface between said discs and within said paint spray contact area, said stream of paint having a width less than said contact length of said discs, and means for moving said paint spray applicator across said resilient surface. 

1. A paint spray applicator adaptable for movement across a resilient urethane surface to provide said surface with indicia in the form of a continuous stripe, said paint spray applicator being comprised of a pair of spaced apart surface engagiNg discs, said discs having beveled knife edged peripheries to penetrate said urethane floor surface a distance to establish a predetermined contact length with said floor surface, said contact lengths of both said discs cooperating to define a paint spray contact area, shaft means rotatably receiving said discs, frame means supporting said shaft means, paint spray means mounted on said frame means and being adaptable to deliver a stream of paint onto said floor surface between said discs and within said paint spray contact area, said stream of paint having a width less than said contact length of said discs, and means for moving said paint spray applicator across said resilient surface. 